1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to migrating applications, in particular user views and interfaces of applications, previously used in Cartesian coordinate-based platforms into tag field-based platforms.
2. Description of the Related Art
Hyper-text markup language (HTML) is an authoring language to create documents for applications on the world wide web (WWW). HTML's common use for WWW applications often employs HTML as a web-based language; however, with HTML's ability to structure information and to link to other documents, HTML is found to be a useful language to present views and user interface documents. Views and user interface documents are typically used to provide end-user access to databases and similar programs providing information.
Views and interfaces provide users an access to database application, and programs and other similar content providing applications. Numerous user views and interfaces have used platforms that have included Windows® operating systems by the Microsoft Corporation of Redmond, Washington and languages such as Java® by Sun Microsystems of San Jose, CA. User views and interfaces in Windows®, Java®, and similar operating systems and languages have been written to include a Cartesian coordinate system that relates a control or command to a specific X-Y coordinate pair on a page or document.
HTML, and similar web-based languages, do not make use of such Cartesian coordinate systems; therefore, languages such as HTML cannot make use of the X-Y coordinate values of prior platforms which relate key interface elements to information stored in databases and similar content-providing applications. HTML makes use of control characters, also referred to as tags or tag fields, to determine presentation in a document of text, images, and links. Typically, several hundred tags are used to layout the information in an HTML page. For example, tags are used to allow text formatting which can specify paragraphs, line spacing, and horizontal rules. Graphics and links to other pages are also specified by HTML tags. Link tags allow users to be directed to another page by choosing or clicking on an image or a word on a current page. HTML also provides for the use of templates. A template is a blank form that provides, among other features, instruction as to how fields are set, field locations, field lengths, field widths, and field heights. Placeholder tags are provided and the placeholder tags can be replaced by controls. Each placeholder tag is associated with a unique identifier (ID). Creating a mapping or association between the control and the unique ID specifies the position of a control in a document.
An applet is defined as a programmatic construct that contains information about how data is to be presented. Users can create new applets, or users can modify existing or vendor provided applets. Modified applets are web-enabled or HTML-enabled; however, user-specific requirements necessitate added changes or modifications to the pre-existing applet.
Views are interfaces to the user in which data are presented. A view can include one or a number of applets. Data can be part of a database or similar resource. When an application runs, the application looks to a data repository. A user looks for a particular view. The application looks to the particular view and the applets associated with that view. The application looks up information about what data the application is supposed to provide and how the data is to be presented (i.e., laid out for the user). The application will leave the database and renders the applet in the specific way the data is supposed to be presented and shows the view to the user.
An applet contains configuration information about how the applet looks and what data the applet will show. A number of controls can be associated with an applet. Each control can be tied to a field in an object or the database. In a particular database example, database objects are constructed in column format. Particular controls are tied to the database table columns. Objects can include various data such as names, phone numbers, pictures, etc. Controls can also be independent from database tables. In other words, a control can merely be a name or a similar object. User interface buttons located on a screen are considered controls. An interface button with a control associated with it can have some functionality associated with the control. Various views and applications can use the same interface button that contains specific functionality. A user therefore can obtain specific functionality by activating (i.e., pushing) a particular button.
Applets also contain field controls and non-field controls. Field controls define what data should be shown on the applet, and are different for all applets. Non-field controls are user interfaces such as buttons that are common for all applets and are copied from a model applet to new applets.
Oftentimes, users find themselves with HTML interfaces working with prior applications based on a Cartesian coordinate system. Translating views and interfaces to tag-based languages such as HTML can involve creating drag and drop routines. The translating process requires a user to manually select views and/or interfaces; select controls and drag controls onto applets; drag the views and/or interfaces; and drop the views and/or interfaces into appropriate locations on a blank HTML template. Considering the thousands of prior Cartesian coordinate-based applications that potentially are needed to be converted to HTML, using the manual drag and drop process is a labor-intensive procedure requiring a great deal of time and resources.